John F. Kennedy was elected to office in 1961 with vice president Lyndon B. Johnson. At age 42, he was the second youngest president to be elected. His campaign slogan was “ask not what your country can do for you- ask what youcan do for your country" Less than 3 months after Kennedy became president, the Bay of Pigs Invasion took place. This
President John F. Kennedy's first 100 days in office
invasion was an attempt by the United States government to establish a non-communist government in Cuba. They wanted the Cuban government to be friendly with the United States government. The invasion was unsuccessful. Cuban exiles invaded Cuba with the support of the U.S. government, to overthrow the Cuban government controlled by Fidel Castro. The United States didn't trust Castro because of his relationship with the leader of the Soviet Union. Another issue Kennedy was forced to deal with was the Soviet Union. Their space and missile programs were said to have surpassed the United States. Kennedy's speeches also proved that he was a strong supporter of civil rights. He recognized that he needed the "black vote" if he was going to beat Richard Nixon. John F. Kennedy decided to enter the Vietnam war to stop the spread of communism in asia and keep communists from taking control of Vietnam. Kennedy was very interested in using special tactics for third world warfare with countries threatened by communist rule. In 1961 Kennedy decided that America should finance and make South Vietnam bigger. He also sent American troops to Vietnam to help fight. This broke some agreements made in the Geneva Agreement. By 1962 there were a lot of American military advisors in Vietnam. He believed that guerilla tactics used by the Special Forces would do well in a “brush fire” war with Vietnam. He used limited military and there were sings that he was planning to get out of Vietnam. On October 1, 1963, Kennedy signed the NSAM 263, which stated that the US would withdraw 1,000 troops out of 16,000. This indicated the first steps in a complete withdraw from Vietnam.
While Kennedy was busy with all of this, his killer, Lee Harvey Oswald, was running around. As a child, Oswald didn't have much guidence and didn't know right from wrong. He also didn't know how to handle his problems in a civil way. This carried over to adulthood. There is evidence of him giving fits of rage and hitting his wife.
Oswald's mug shot from the Dallas police department
Oswald also had an interest to become a citizen of the Soviet Union and to renounce his U.S. citizenship. When he was denied citizenship to the Soviet Union, he was later found in a hotel bathroom with a minor but bloody cut on his wrist. He was finally allowed citizenship to the Soviet Union, but soon grew bored of his life there. He later became a U.S. citizen again, and he and his wife moved to Dallas, Texas. He began a job at the Texas School Book Depository, and lived near the school during the week. On the weekends he lived in his house with his wife Marina. Twice during the weeks when Oswald was not home, FBI agents visited his house looking for information on Marina, who was a suspected Soviet spy. When he found out about this, Oswald went to the Dallas FBI office looking for agent James Hosty. When he was told that Hosty wasn’t there, he left a note with the receptionist that said “Let this be a warning. I will blow up the FBI and the Dallas Police Department if you don’t stop bothering my wife. Signed - Lee Harvey Oswald.” Oswald was also pro-castro. He disagreed with Kennedy's invasion of Cuba. He was a storng supporter of Fidel Castro, and said if he had a son, he would name him after Fidel Castro. Oswalds hero was a former major in Castro's army.
On Friday, November 22, 1963, Kennedy was driving down a street in Dealey Plaza, Dallas, Texas, while Lee Harvey Oswald was looking out of a building window. Oswald then made a decision that changed the world forever…
Background information of JFK’s assassination
John F. Kennedy was elected to office in 1961 with vice president Lyndon B. Johnson. At age 42, he was the second youngest president to be elected. His campaign slogan was “ask not what your country can do for you- ask what youcan do for your country" Less than 3 months after Kennedy became president, the Bay of Pigs Invasion took place. This
Kennedy's speeches also proved that he was a strong supporter of civil rights. He recognized that he needed the "black vote" if he was going to beat Richard Nixon.
John F. Kennedy decided to enter the Vietnam war to stop the spread of communism in asia and keep communists from taking control of Vietnam. Kennedy was very interested in using special tactics for third world warfare with countries threatened by communist rule. In 1961 Kennedy decided that America should finance and make South Vietnam bigger. He also sent American troops to Vietnam to help fight. This broke some agreements made in the Geneva Agreement. By 1962 there were a lot of American military advisors in Vietnam. He believed that guerilla tactics used by the Special Forces would do well in a “brush fire” war with Vietnam. He used limited military and there were sings that he was planning to get out of Vietnam. On October 1, 1963, Kennedy signed the NSAM 263, which stated that the US would withdraw 1,000 troops out of 16,000. This indicated the first steps in a complete withdraw from Vietnam.
While Kennedy was busy with all of this, his killer, Lee Harvey Oswald, was running around. As a child, Oswald didn't have much guidence and didn't know right from wrong. He also didn't know how to handle his problems in a civil way. This carried over to adulthood. There is evidence of him giving fits of rage and hitting his wife.
Oswald also had an interest to become a citizen of the Soviet Union and to renounce his U.S. citizenship. When he was denied citizenship to the Soviet Union, he was later found in a hotel bathroom with a minor but bloody cut on his wrist. He was finally allowed citizenship to the Soviet Union, but soon grew bored of his life there. He later became a U.S. citizen again, and he and his wife moved to Dallas, Texas. He began a job at the Texas School Book Depository, and lived near the school during the week. On the weekends he lived in his house with his wife Marina. Twice during the weeks when Oswald was not home, FBI agents visited his house looking for information on Marina, who was a suspected Soviet spy. When he found out about this, Oswald went to the Dallas FBI office looking for agent James Hosty. When he was told that Hosty wasn’t there, he left a note with the receptionist that said “Let this be a warning. I will blow up the FBI and the Dallas Police Department if you don’t stop bothering my wife. Signed - Lee Harvey Oswald.”
Oswald was also pro-castro. He disagreed with Kennedy's invasion of Cuba. He was a storng supporter of Fidel Castro, and said if he had a son, he would name him after Fidel Castro. Oswalds hero was a former major in Castro's army.
On Friday, November 22, 1963, Kennedy was driving down a street in Dealey Plaza, Dallas, Texas, while Lee Harvey Oswald was looking out of a building window. Oswald then made a decision that changed the world forever…
The Decision